Archives: practicum

Three Great Things – Week 3

Week 3 is in the bag! 30% done and feelin’ great!

In honour of week three, here are three great things that happened this week!

1) One of my kids was walking like a robot on Monday morning, and though I really wanted to encourage Robot E. because she was being cute and hilarious, I had to send Regular E. to write in her journal. “That would be an interesting journal entry, though,” I said. “In what ways are Robot E. and Regular E. the same? You could do a Venn Diagram!”

A few minutes later, while I was sitting with another student at the next table, I could hear E. reading her journal entry back to herself under her breath. It was about Robot E. And she drew a picture of herself as a robot. And it was the cutest.

2) All my lessons went very well, and I feel like today’s was my best observation with Jim yet. He speaks so deliberately and every single thing he says to me I can learn something from; I can’t imagine a better person to be my teacher. I’m feeling more confident and sure, and though I have areas of improvement, I have the tools I need to make the appropriate shifts. Thanks, Jim.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BDrNVr2PQnM/?taken-by=ms.bayne

3) I had a breakthrough with a tough but amazing student today. Because of him, I’m really learning what it takes to foster a relationship based on safety and trust with a child, and the importance of a trauma-informed practice in an inner-city school. That kid deserves so much more than he’s got and I’m so glad I met him.

I really hope all my cohort pals are having a positive practicum experience. I look up to you guys, as your perspectives have made me consider things about my practice that perhaps wouldn’t have occurred to me without you.

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Lesson Plan in Action: Morris is a Boy’s Name

My teaching philosophy is under construction. As I continue on my journey as a teacher candidate, my views are constantly evolving with each new tidbit of information that is thrown my way, but there is one constant that will remain static until the end of my time as a teacher decades from now: I am an activist teacher. Sound scary to you? Well, it does to me, too, but some of the scariest social justice subjects to broach are the ones that children can grasp faster than adults can, so why not expose them early? My quest to turn the next generation into kind, compassionate, free and critical thinkers has to start somewhere.

I decided to take a risk with my read aloud today, touching on a subject that, while topical and totally relevant to my school district as well as the world we live in, is continually viewed as controversial by many in our community. Pushing the envelope on touchy subjects can’t be easy for some teachers, as there are an infinite number determining factors that might derail your lesson or discourage you from tackling those issues at all, such as the views of parents or even of the wider school community. To combat any backlash, however, I decided to approach the “touchy” subject of gender norms and identity gently and indirectly, through the picture book Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress by Christine Baldacchino.

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Watching the Ripples

There’s this metaphor that keeps popping into my mind when I sit and reflect on my time in the classroom, and it encompasses and can be applied to pretty much everything I’ve encountered so far in my journey as a teacher candidate. Whenever I observe a situation, a student interaction (with work or with others), or consider my place in this wide world of education, the metaphor’s there in my mind, tugging at me and reminding me to be open and ready for anything.  As I reflect on my first week of my two week practicum, the metaphor still rings true.

Throw a stone into a calm, still lake and watch the ripples flow forth, in all directions, predictable and totally random simultaneously. Cause and effect. Every action has a reaction. The thing is, we can predict that the ripples will appear, but where those ripples take us is where the unknown can throw us for a loop.

This week I watched this metaphor manifest in several ways.

First, by being present in the classroom every day rather than once a week, I can really see the dynamics of the class shift based on which students are present. I watch the kiddos swarm the Lego table one day and then, when one single student is away the next day, the Lego table is left to stand alone in the corner. Only once has there been a day when the entire class is present, and boy was that an eye opener! I’m beginning to predict the ripples of certain students and that’s making me feel less like I’m lost in the woods and more like I’m exactly where I need to be.

https://instagram.com/p/9pQFVbPQhG/?taken-by=ms.bayne

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Lesson Plan in Action: Who’s the Boss?

Today was only my second day in the classroom, but with the support and encouragement from my school adviser I decided I was ready to dive in head first and teach my first lesson! This is what I’m here to do, right? Why not jump right in? I was nervous, as I had never written a lesson plan before and simply followed a template from my Social Studies text, but after a great chat with my faculty adviser before school and my SA’s go-ahead, the nerves transformed into excitement pretty quickly.

Since it is the Thursday before the federal election, and learning about government and personal responsibility as a Canadian citizen is part of the grade two and three curriculum in BC, I chose to teach about how we choose the people that represent us in government and why it is important to vote. I had a feeling that some of the students would be at least aware of the election, maybe even have some opinions (or their parent/guardian’s opinions) already, and I was right, but my desire to keep it non-partisan helped me steer any political discussions back to our main focus.

https://instagram.com/p/8zhMc3PQu6/?taken-by=ms.bayne

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Dear My First Class,

Teacher's Desk - Linn School
It’s the eve of the night I meet you, and boy am I excited. I say that a lot, I think, that I’m excited, but this excitement is an entirely different thing. You see, you’re what I’ve been waiting for my entire life. Really. No foolin’. I’ve been waiting to meet you since I was a little girl, and you didn’t even exist yet. Isn’t that neat? I feel pretty neat, being allowed into your classroom for a whole year so I can get to know you and play with you and see what you’re good at. You’re probably good at lots of different things, maybe more things than me! My excitement is bubbling over. Are you excited, too?

Rumour has it you’re a great bunch. I bet you’re smart and funny and curious and cool. I bet you all wear your hair different from anybody else in the class, and I bet you all look great doing it. I secretly hope you’ll paint me a picture of a taco. I promise to frame it. I hope you want to learn loads of stuff and ask lots of questions and search for some answers. I have lots of questions.

Will you show me around your classroom and tell me your favourite part?

Do you like space and dinosaurs? And volcanoes?

Isn’t this cat skirt the best skirt ever?

What is your favourite book?

What do you want to know about me?

Will I do a good job?

I know the answer to one of those questions already. Two, if you count the one about the cat skirt. I WILL do a good job, because it’s the job I was born to do, and because you guys deserve it.

See you in the morning,

Ms. Bayne, your teacher.

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